America's Two Best Soccer Players Have Now Left Europe For MLS — Here's What It Means For US Soccer

For both American players and American soccer in general, the
conventional wisdom is that legitimacy lies in Europe.

For years MLS has brought in aging European stars — guys like
David Beckham and Thierry Henry. Those signings are designed to
boost interest and sell tickets. But they are also a function of
a general desire by owners and executives to be taken seriously
as a league.

At the same time as the country's domestic league has gained
respectability through an infusion of foreign talent, the flow of
young American players has gone in the opposite direction.

The majority of young, talented American players eventually move
to Europe to try to play in the world's best leagues. "Playing in
Europe" has become a shorthand for quality when it comes to
talking about American players.

So how do we explain the return America's two best
players to MLS?

At age 26, Michael Bradley left second-place Roma and signed a
contract with Toronto FC this week. He'll
reportedly make around $6.5 million — six-times his salary in
Italy. His move comes a few months after Clint Dempsey left
Tottenham for the Seattle Sounders.

Bradley's agent
told Goal.com, "There were many offers, also from Serie
A, by clubs like Verona and Bologna, but Micheal chose to return
[to MLS] after 10 years in Europe. It was a bitter choice, but
made with the heart. Roma wanted him to stay, to leave for
Toronto was his choice."

He's not an aging American returning home after a long career in
Europe, like Brian McBride. He's not a young talent who flamed
out after a brief spell overseas, like Landon Donovan.

He's a world-class player who has proven himself at one of the
biggest teams in one of the biggest leagues in Europe. And he's
about to enter his best years.

It's a great move for Bradley on a personal level. He's getting
paid much, much more money. He gets to live close to home. He
doesn't have to deal with expectations or the media or the threat
of losing his job because a new signing comes in.

There's a point at which abstract concepts like "proving
yourself" are less important than money and lifestyle. Bradley
has reached that point.

It's also great for MLS. To grow as a league, it needs
world-class players in their primes — something they've struggled
to find in the past.

But is it great for the national team?

Probably not.

The world's best soccer nations have both a thriving domestic
league and a large number of players playing in Europe's top
clubs.

Right now, there's a shortage of U.S. players at top clubs.

Only two Americans played in the Champions League in 2013-14.
Only three American outfield players are currently playing in the
English Premier League.

MLS players might make up more than half of the United States
men's national team squad that takes the field against Ghana in
next year's World Cup opener.

It's not that these players lack quality. But for the USMNT to
become a top-8 team in the world rather than a top-15 team, it
needs a large pool of players with week-in, week-out experience
against the best in the world.